Apparatus combining a variable amount imprinter with credit verification circuitry

ABSTRACT

Disclosed is a credit verification imprinter for use with a credit card embossed or etched with data typically corresponding to the customer&#39;&#39;s name, address, and numerical identification. Also provided on the card is magnetically BCD encoded data relating to (1) the charge limit the card may be used for in a predetermined period of time, preferably a month; (2) the time interval in which the card was last used; and (3) the accumulated money total of charge purchases made with the card during the time interval indicated in (2). The sales clerk registers into a variable money amount imprinter the money amount of the current transaction together with the current date, this information to be imprinted together with the information of the charge onto a sales slip or the like if the current credit transaction is approved. Before the imprinting operation can take place, the magnetically encoded data is read by movable read/write head disposed beneath the print bed. A credit verification test is then conducted by appropriate circuitry to determine whether the card has been used for credit transactions exceeding the limit listed in (1) above during the interval of time indicated by the month setting on the variable date wheels of the imprinter. Other checks are also made to establish the authenticity of the information magnetically encoded on the card to insure that no tampering or data transmission errors have occurred. Different colored lights are provided on the imprinter chassis to indicate the occurrence of different conditions detected by the data verification circuitry. Upon completion of the data verification check, a stop is removed from the path of travel of the imprinting head thereby permitting the imprinting operation to take place. After the imprinting head has been returned to its start position a switch is caused to close and thereby reset all credit verification registers preparatory to the next credit operation.

l l vase? QR rwqL-IV 4 4 ROOM [72] Inventor Anthony J. Presti Warren,NJ.

[21] Appl. No. 779,716

[22] Filed Nov. 29, 1968 [45] Patented Feb. 16, 1971 [73] AssigneeFarrington Manufacturing Company New York, N.Y.

[54] APPARATUS COMBINING A VARIABLE AMOUNT IMPRINTER WITH CREDITVERIFICATION Primary Examiner Daryl W. Cook Attorney-Gerald J. Ferguson,Jr.

its rasw X2 9 anal- M a UPDATE ABSTRACT: Disclosed is a creditverification imprinter for use with a credit card embossed or etchedwith data typically corresponding to the customers name, address, andnumerical identification. Also provided on the card is magnetically 2CDencoded data relating to (1) the charge limit the card may be used forin a predetermined period of time, preferably a month; (2) the timeinterval in which the card was last used; and (3) the accumulated moneytotal of charge purchases made with the card during the time intervalindicated in (2). The sales clerk registers into a variable money amountimprinter the money amount of the current transaction together with thecurrent date, this information to be imprinted together with theinformation of the charge onto a sales slip or the like if the currentcredit transaction is approved.

Before the imprinting operation can take place, the magnetically encodeddata is read by a movable read/write head disposed beneath the printbed. A credit verification testis then conducted by appropriatecircuitry to determine whether the card has been used for credittransactions exceeding the limit listed in (1) above during the intervalof time indicated by the month setting on the variable date wheels ofthe imprinter. Other checks are also made to establish the authenticityof the information magnetically encoded on the card to insure that notampering or data transmission errors have occurred. Different coloredlights are provided on the imprinter chassis to indicate the occurrenceof different conditions detected by the data verification circuitry.Upon completion of the data verification check, a stopis removed fromthe path of travel of the imprinting head thereby permitting theimprinting operation to take place. After the imprinting head has beenreturned to its start position a switch is caused to close and therebyreset all credit verification registers preparatory to the next creditoperation.

PATENTED FEB 1 6 I971 SHEET 2 OF 8 APPARATUS COMBINING A VARIABLE AMOUNTIMPRINTER WITH CREDIT VERIFICATION CIRCUITRY BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTIONThis machine relates to imprinting devices and, in particular, toimprinters having incorporated therewith credit verification circuitry.

As has been recently publicized, there are many trends indicating thechange from an economy based on cash to one based largely on credit and,in particular, credit cards and the like. With such anticipatedwidespread use of credit cards, it is clear that more realistic controlswill have to be imposed on their use if their use is to extend to abroad segment of the population. In particular, there are those whobecause of their financial situation should not be entitled to as muchcredit as others more fortunately situated. With such restrictionsrealistically imposed, a system of credit based on charge cards couldextend down to relatively low income levels and thus permit the broadestpossible population base to use the system.

At first blush, it would seem that a computer centered creditverification system would be ideal wherein the customer uponpresentation of his credit card would have his credit for his intendedpurchase immediately checked in the computer to establish whether hiscredit were sufficient to justify the credit transaction he desires tomake. Given the number of credit transactions which occur daily withinthe various commercial centers throughout the United States and othercountries, it is clear that such a computer system would indeed beprohibitive in terms of expense.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is thus a primary object of this inventionto provide a credit card imprinter incorporating a fairly simple creditverification method and circuits to thereby enable a more practicalwidespread use of credit cards.

It is a further object of this invention to provide circuitry and amethod for credit verification whereby the use of credit cards and thelike may be extended to a broader base of the population.

It is a further object of this invention to provide an improved creditcard containing thereon information necessary to verify the creditstanding of the card bearer.

It is a further object of this invention to provide credit verificationcircuitry for use with such a card whereby the card may be analyzed andupdated to thereby facilitate usage of the card in credit transactionswhile at the same time maintaining a control over excessive usage of thecard.

It is a further object of this invention to provide a card of the abovetype which is substantially tamper-proof.

It is a further object of this invention-to provide a method andcircuitry for performing checks on the data stored on the above typecard to detect whether the stored data has been tampered with ortransmitted in error.

It is a further object of this invention to provide credit verificationcircuitry for use with an imprinter whereby the money amount of acurrent transaction is entered into the imprinter by a sales clerk orthe like and that money amount is accumulated with the total moneyamount of prior transactions over a predetermined interval of time todetermine if the accumulated total exceeds the charge limit also storedon the above type card.

Other objects and advantages of this invention will become apparent uponreading the appended claims in conjunction with the following detaileddescription and the attached drawmg.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING FIG. 1 is a flow diagram showing anillustrative procedure for credit verification.

FIG. 2 is an illustrative embodiment of a credit card for use with theinvention.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram of illustrative circuitry for forming creditverification.

FIGS. 4, 5 and 6 are respectively plan, front. and end views of avariable money amount imprinter in accordance with the invention.

FIG. 7 is an underside view ofthe imprinter of FIGS. 5-7.

FIG. 8 is a detail taken along the line 8-8 of FIG. 7.

FIG. 9 is a diagrammatic illustration of a typical structure forconverting data registered in the imprinter to BCD electrical signals.

FIG. 10 is a diagrammatic illustration of a strip for indicating theposition of a read/write head for use in the invention.

FIG. 11 illustrates a typical magnetic strip for use with the creditcard of FIG. 2.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF A PREFERRED EMBODIMENT OF THE INVENTIONReferring to FIG. 1 there is shown a flow diagram illustrating the stepsinvolved in verifying the credit of a customer, it, of course, beingunderstood that other characteristics of a person or object could beverified in accordance with the steps described in FIG. 1. When anunauthorized card bearer attempts a credit transaction what is actuallybeing checked is whether the credit limit established for the card hasbeen exceeded during the current time interval established by theimprinter. At block 10, it is indicated that all registers are reset,this resetting operation to be described in more detail hereinafter. Thecustomer's card is then placed within the imprinter and a button on theimprinter is depressed to initiate Phase P as indicated at 12 in FIG. 1.The operation of the button causes a movable read/write magnetic head tohe moved under the control of an electrical motor as will be describedin more detail hereinafter. The head will move with respect to data andclock signals which have been magnetically recorded on the card, seemagnetic strip on card 101 in FIGS. 2, 3 and 11. During Phase P the dataon the card will be read from the strip 100 as indicated at I4 inFIG. 1. Referring to FIG. 11, it can be seen that there are two tracks102 and 104, track 102 containing a check bit at I06, date informationat 108, charge sum information at and charge limit information at 112.Basically, the purpose of this information is to insure that the card isnot used for credit purchases exceeding the amount indicated by thecharge limit data within a predetermined period of time regardless ofwhether the card bearer is authorized to make credit purchases or not.Hence, this information serves the two-fold purpose of (I) preventing anauthorized card bearer from charging more purchases than she is entitledto, and (2) preventing unauthorized card bearers from exceeding thecharge limit stated on the card. Of course, since this information ismagnetically encoded on the card there is no readily apparent manner bywhich the card bearer can tamper with it. It should also be noted thateach digit is represented in BCD code. All operations within the creditverification procedure of this invention thus take place on BCD numbersalthough other codes may be employed.

Referring to FIG. 3 there is shown an illustrative block diagram ofcircuitry for effecting the credit verification procedure, theread/write head being indicated at 200. The motor 201 must be energizedbefore the head can move. This in turn requires that Phase P flip-flop205 be set. However. flip-flop 205 will be set only when momentarycontact switch 203 is closed, this switch being located on the imprinterand operated by a sales clerk or the like.

The head 200 includes two elements which are respectively disposedadjacent thedata and clock tracks I02 and 104 .shown in FIG. 11. Theclock signals are applied over line 202 through gate 213 to synchronizeclock source 204 which provides clock signals throughout the circuitryof FIG. 3 over lines generally indicated at 206. The data from track 102is applied over line 208 and through gate 209 and is read into serialinput register 210 under the control of the clock source. As can beseen, the input register is divided into four portions, 212-218respectively corresponding to the portions l06- -1I2 shown in FIG. 11.

The last operation within Phase P is indicated at 16 in FIG. 1, thisoperation consisting of a check to determine whether or not the checkbit is a l or not. This check, although simple, permits a determinationas to whether the magnetically encoded data has been tampered with ornot. Of course, more check bits could be provided and sophisticatederror detection and/or correction codes could be implemented. Referringto FIG. 3, the above check is made at block 220 by appropriate meanswell known to those of ordinary skill in this art. If the check is notsatisfied, the credit procedure is stopped as indicated at block 222 ofFIG. 3 and block 18 of FIG. 1. If the check is satisfied, a yellow lightis turned on as indicated at block 224 of FIG. 3 and block 20 of FIG. 1.Also the Phase P, flip-flop of FIG. 3 is set and the credit verificationprocedure proceeds as indicated at block 22 of FIG. 1.

As indicated at block 24 of FIG. 1 the month stored on the card iscompared with the month indicated on the imprinter. The date is set intothe imprinter on a daily basis via date wheels as is well known withinthe credit card imprinting art. Usually the date information provided isthat of month, day, and year. Although all three of these date units canbe employed, in this embodiment only the month and year are employed. Inother words, if the month set into the machine were, for example, 0868,thereby indicating that the current month was August and the year I968,and if the date on the card were 0868, there would be no need to changethe date on the card. This is indicated at block 24 of FIG. 1 where theprocedure steps to the block 28 via line 30. The procedure will alsostep to block 28 whenever the month on the card is earlier than thecurrent month entered into the imprinter via the date wheels. Thus, ifthe current date were 0868 and the card date were 0768, the checkestablished at block 28 would be satisfied.

As can be seen in FIG. 3, the setting of the Phase P flip-flop 226conditions gate 230 to apply the month information from register portion214. The construction of register 214 is such that although data isapplied serially thereto, the different data portions 212-218 can beread out individually in serial form without effecting the otherportions.

As will be described in more detail hereinafter, means are provided forconverting the decimal data from the imprinter digit wheels to a BCDelectrical signal which is stored in imprinter date register 232. Theoutput from fiip-flop 226 also conditions gate 234 and thus the cardmonth and the imprinter month are serially compared in comparator 228,13 cycles of the comparator being required for effecting the comparatoroperation. A parallel comparator could also be employed if necessary toincrease the speed of operation. This, of course, applies to all serialcircuits utilized. If the card month is later than the imprinter month,this indicates that the card or the date wheels on the imprinter havebeen tampered with or some error has occurred and thus, the creditverification procedure is stopped as indicated at block 236 of FIG. 3and block 32 of FIG. 1. Also, a red light on the imprinter is turned Ifthe card month is earlier than the imprinter month, this indicates thatthe card month should be updated to the current month indicated by theimprinter. This is indicated by setting Phase P, flip-flop 238 of FIG.3. This in turn conditions gate 237 to serially replace the card monthcontents of portion 214 of register 210 with the contents of imprintermonth register 232. This operation is indicated at blocks 34 and 36 ofFIG. 1. After the transfer of the imprinter month to portion 214, themonth is updated.

Phase P flip-flop 240 is set by pulse source 245 through AND circuit 243if the card month is the same as the imprinter as determined bycomparator 228. If flip-flop 240 has been set gates 244 and 246 areconditioned thereby causing the charge sum from the card to be added tothe money amount of the transaction as indicated on imprinter. Theimprinter money amount is entered through levers disposed on theimprinter as is well known in this art and as will be described in moredetail hereinafter. The money amount or charge sum stored in 218 ofregister 210 corresponds to the accumulated or total amount of purchasesmade with the card in the month indicated on the card. Thus, as long asthe month stored on the card is the same as the current month indicatedon the imprinter, successive credit purchases will be accumulated in thecharge sum portion 112 of the card shown in FIG. 2 in a manner to bedescribed in more detail hereinafter. Thus, the setting of Phase P,flip-flop 240 causes the charge sum to be added to the money amount ofthe transaction, the sum being temporarily stored in the money amountregister 248 over line 257.

If flip-flop 238 has been set thereby indicating that the card month isearlier than the month indicated on the imprinter, it would, of coursebe erroneous to add the amount of the current transaction to theaccumulated total for the earlier month since one of the basic featuresof the credit verification procedure is to prevent excessive creditpurchases within a predetermined period of time which in the case of thepreferred embodiment is one month and, in particular, the current monthindicated on the machine. Thus, if flip-flop 238 has been set indicatingthat the card month was earlier, zero is added to the charge sum, gates246 and 254 being conditioned to add the zero to the charge sum, whichis then placed in register 256. In FIG. 1 the commencement of Phase P isindicated at block 38 and the check which occurs at block 228 isindicated at block 40 while the summation of the charge sum to theimprinter money amount is indicated at 42 and the addition of zero tothe imprinter money is indicated at block 44. In this embodiment, block28 and 40 of FIG. I are indicated by block 228 in FIG. 3.

After the appropriate addition has occurred, Phase P, commences withflip-flop 258 being triggered from pulse source 259, which is energizedafter the addition steps have occurred. This phase is characterized bythe comparison of the updated charge sum which is temporarily stored inmoney amount register 248 as previously stated. Phase P, flip-flop 258conditions gates 260 and 262 to effect a serial comparison. As statedbefore, the accumulated charge sum cannot exceed the charge limit withinthe time period indicated by the month set into the imprinter and ifthis occurs an indication is provided on line 264 from comparator 266which causes the credit verification procedure to stop and the red lightto turn on, this being indicated at block 32 of FIG. I, the comparisonbeing indicated at block 52.

If the charge limit is not exceeded, line 268 will be energized therebysetting Phase P flip-flop 270, the commencement of this phase beingindicated at block 54 of FIG. I. With flip-flop 270 set, gate 272 isconditioned to transfer the newly accumulated charge sum to the chargesum portion 218 of register 210, this operation being indicated at block56 of FIG. 1. Phase P flip-flop 274 is then set from pulse source 275through AND gate 277. AND gate 277 is conditioned only when the motorsense terminal 217 senses that the read/write head 200 has traveled asufficient distance to insure proper head speed. Gate 276 is nowconditioned to serially transfer the data from the input register 210 tothe read/write head 200. At the same time clock signals are gatedthrough gate 278 under control of flip-flop 274. Further, the motor 201is started under the control of flip-flop 274 to permit the updated datato be recorded on the magnetic strip of the card. The above steps areindicated at blocks 58 and 60 in FIG. 1.

Next, as indicated in FIG. 1, the interlock for the imprinting head isreleased thereby enabling the imprinting operation to proceed. Thus, itis clear that no imprinting operation can occur until the creditverification just described has been satisfied. The interlock isreleased by energizing a solenoid which will be described in more detailhereinafter. The sole noid is energized when flip-flop 280 is set fromthe pulse source 283 which, in turn, is actuated after the updated datais recorded on the card.

From the foregoing it can be seen that the credit verification scheme ofthe instant invention does indeed provide a procedure whereby a cardbearer is limited to a certain amount of credit purchases over apredetermined period of time.

Reference should now be made to FIGS. 410 which illustrate a variableamount imprinter incorporating the credit verification system describedhereinbefore with respect to FIGS. 1-3 and 11. The variable amountimprinter is a well known device, one type of which is described in U.S.Pat. No. 3,279,369 granted to W. A. Wight on Oct. I8, 1966. Also, asubstantial portion of the imprinter head interlock feature has beendescribed in copending U.S. application Ser. No. 702,122 filed byWilliam P. Barbour on Jan. 3l, 1968. Referring to FIGS. l3, plan, frontand end views of a variable amount imprinter in accordance with theinvention are respectively shown. In FIG. 4 the imprinting head has beencut away to illustrate more clearly the operation of the invention. Theprint bed 300 over which the imprinting head 302 travels is shown inFIG. 4. Contained within the head is a roller platen which causesinformation embossed or etched onto a printing plate, credit card or thelike to be imprinted onto a document such as a sales slip or the likedisposed in the path of travel of the imprinting head 302, the directionof travel of the imprinting head during the imprinting operation beingindicated by the arrow in FIG. 5. This is all well known in theimprinting art. Disposed over the anvil 304 is a credit card 306indicated in dashed lines. Indicated in dotted lines on the credit cardis a dotted portion 310 corresponding to the magnetic tape 100 of thecard shown in FIG. 2. Different ways may be employed to provide themagnetic data on the card. In this embodiment, a piece of adhesivemagnetic tape is applied to the underside of the card 306. Disposedbelow the magnetic tape portion 330 is an opening 308 in the anvil 304.and the print bed 300. As will be brought out in more detailhereinafter, the movable magnetic read/write head described hereinbeforemoves along the longer axis of the elongated opening 308 to read fromand record on the magnetic strip 310.

Also indicated on card 306 is a dotted area 312 which is the same as thearea indicated at 103 in FIG. 2 and which contains the raised letteringand numerals corresponding typically to the customers name, address andidentification number. This information is imprinted on the sales slip.However, prior to the recording of such information the previouslydiscussed credit verification must be made, as stated before.

In addition to imprinting the above-mentioned customer information onthe card the money amount of the current transaction together with thecurrent month are also printed on the card. Further, in someapplications an additional plate is mounted on the print bed forproviding information identifying the particular dealer. The month ofthe transaction is indicated on the date wheels generally indicated at314, such date wheels being well known within the imprinting art. Asshown in FIG. 4 the date wheels are set to Dec. 7, 1968. These wheelsare manually adjusted at the beginning of each day by the imprinteroperator.

The money amount of the transaction is entered by levers generallyindicated 316 which in turn control digit wheels generally indicated318. As indicated in FIG. 4, the levers are set to $200.02. Further, thedigit wheels 318 are also set to $200.02. As is well known in theimprinting art, these levers are controlled by the operator prior to theimprinting operation.

Also shown in FIG. 4 is a pushbutton 320 which corresponds to switch 203of FIG. 3 and which is depressed by the operator to initiate theabove-described credit verification procedure. Also shown in FIG. 4 arelights 322326, these being respectively yellow, red, and green, thefunction of these lights having been described hereinbefore with respectto FIGS. I and 3.

Generally indicated at 328 of FIG. 4 is a broken away section of theprint bed showing one of the bearings 330 which supports the imprintinghead 302 which travels along the track 332 generally indicated in FIG.5. Also partially shown at 328 in FIG. 4 is a removable stop member 332which prevents the pin 334 from forward movement in the direction of thearrow until the stop 332 is moved from the path of travel of theimprinting head. The stop is removed only after the credit verificationprocedure has been satisfied. As will be described in more detailhereinafter this stop is controlled by a solenoid disposed under theimprinter, this solenoid being energized during Phase P In FIG. 4,generally indicated at 336 is another broken aw ay section of the printbed showing a finger 338 which is engaged by the other rear bearing 340for the imprinting head: the bearing depressing the finger 338 to theposition shown'to thereby close a roller position microswitch disposedbelow the print bed and thereby cause all of the registers employed inthe credit verification procedure to be reset and the abovementionedsolenoid to be deenergized. That is, these registers and the solenoidare reset after the imprinting operation has occurred and the imprintinghead has been returned to its start position shown in FIGS. 4 and 5.

The overall operation of the imprinter together with credit verifier cannow be described with respect to a credit transaction in a departmentstore, for example. When a customer presents a credit card to the salesclerk thereby indicating a desire to make a credit purchase, the clerkfirst places the card in the position indicated in FIG. 4. Next, a salesslip is placed over the card in a manner well known in the imprintingart. Next, the amount of the transaction is registered into theimprinter by appropriate movement of the levers 316, dial 3l7 providingthe clerk with a visual indication that the lever movement has beencorrectly performed. The roller head is then moved to an intermediaterposition which activates card hold down mechanism 710 (which will bedescribed in detail hereinafter) andv operates finger 338 throughappropriate mechanical linkage not shown thus operating theabove-mentioned roller position microswitch. The button 320 is thenpushed thereby initiating the credit verification procedure, and, inparticular, energizing the motor which causes the read head disposedbelow the print bed to read the magnetically encoded information on thecustomer's card. Depending on the outcome ofthe credit verificationcheck, one of the lights 322- 326 will be lit. If the customers creditlimit has not been exceeded and the other checks have been satisfied,the green light 326 will be turned on and the stop 332 will be removedfrom the path ofthe pin 334 thereby permitting the imprinting operation.When the clerk sees the green light come on, she pulls the head 302across the print bed thereby causing the embossed or etched lettering ornumerals on the costomer's card to be printed on the sales slip. Also,printed on the sales slip would be the current date, the amount of thecurrent transaction, and dealer information, if any. After theimprinting operation is performed, the clerk returns the head to itsstart position preparatory to the next imprinting operation. When soreturned, the finger 338-is retracted as shown in FIG. 4 to reset allregisters for the next data verification procedure. In some instances,it will also be necessary to enable the button 320 when depressed toreset all data verification registers since at the beginning of the day,some assurance must be had that all data verification registers arereset for the first credit transaction of the day after the power forthe imprinter has been turned on.

Referring now to FIG. 7 there is shown the underside of the imprintershown in FIGS. 4-6. Generally indicated at 400 are the leverscorresponding to the money amount levers shown at 316 in FIG. 4.

As can be seen from inspection, these are also set to correspond to amoney amount transaction of $200.02. The levers control the position ofthe digit wheels by a rack and gear arrangement which is well known inthe imprinting art and illustrated in'the previously mentioned patentgranted to W. A. Wight. The racks are generally shown at 402, while thedigit wheels are generally indicated at 404. The rack arms 402 areconnected by extensions 405-410 to the levers 400 which project to theupper side of the imprinter, these extensions being well known. Alsoconnected to the levers 400 are a plurality of strips 412-420. On theupper side of these strips are disposed the digits which are presentedat dial 317 on the upper side of the imprinter to thereby enable theoperator to visually verify that she has entered the correct amountcorresponding to the amount of the current credit transaction. Suchstrips are well known. Disposed on the underside of these strips inaccordance with the invention are metallic conductors for converting theentered money amount into a BCD coded electrical signal which isutilized by the credit verification circuitry and which is entered intoregister 248 of FIG. 3. Referring to FIG. 9 strip 418 is shown indetail, this strip being typical of the encoding strips 412-420. Alsoshown is a plurality of electrically conducting fingers 422-430, thesefingers being mounted on a bracket 434. Referring to FIG. 7 brackets432-436 are shown, each of these brackets having electrically conductingfingers mounted thereon as indicated. Note that such brackets are notprovided for strips 412 and 414 since these strips do not correspond tothe dollar portion of the credit transaction and since only the dollarportion enters into the credit verification procedure in thisembodiment.

Returning again to FIG. 9, disposed on the underside of the strip 418are portions generally indicated at 0-9, the strip 418 of FIG. 7 isdisposed at the 0 position and thus none ofthe fingers 422-430 engageany of the metallic portions generally indicated at 431 shown on theunderside of strip 418. The metallic portion 438 corresponds to a groundterminal. As indicated in FIG. 7 at strip 420, these strips areconnected to levers 400 and thus when the levers are moved the stripsalso move. Hence. if the strip 418 were moved relative to the fingers422-430 so that the portion 2 were disposed beneath the fingers, thefingers 424 and 430 would engage the electrical portions to causeelectrical signals corresponding to the BCD code for 2 to be sent to theappropriate place in register 248 of FIG. 3. From the foregoing it isclear how the three digits corresponding to the dollar portion of themoney amount transaction are BCD encoded. Electrical wires 440- -448 areutilized to connect the BCD encoded signal back to the register 248,these wires not being shown in FIG. 7 for purposes of clarity.

The current date of the transaction is also BCD encoded, the strip andfinger brackets for effecting this being generally indicated at 450. Themethod of BCD coding is exactly the same as that described herein beforewith respect to the money amount. The encoding strips 452-458 aremechanically connected to the digit wheels generally indicated at 460 bya rack and gear arrangement or the like. The racks are moved inaccordance with the movement of the digit wheels. The details of themechanical connection are not given inasmuch as they are not a part ofthe invention. Further, various mechanical means would be well known foreffecting the desired movement of the strips 452-458 with respect totheir respective finger brackets in response to the movement of the datewheels. It should be noted that only the date wheels corresponding tothe month and year are encoded since this is the only time intervalinformation employed in the illustrative verification procedure ofFIG.l.

The magnetic read7vvrite head portion of this information is generallyshown at 462, the head being shownat 464. The head moves within a guidegenerally indicated at 466 having two downwardly extending guide members468 and 470. The inner sides 472 and 474 ofthe guide members 468 and 478are respectively inwardly tapered. The outer sides 476 and 478 of thehead 464 are outwardly tapered and respectively corresponding to theinwardly tapered sides 472 and 474. Thus, the read head is securely heldup between the guide members 468 and 470. The opening 308 of FIG. 4 isdisposed above the read head thereby permitting the desired reading fromand writing on the magnetic strip of the customers credit card, thestrip being indicated at dotted line 310. Typically, some sort ofsuitable material would cover the opening 308 to prevent the passage ofdust and the like through the opening while at the same timefacilitating the transducing action of the magnetic head.

The head is normally biased by spring 480 to the position shown in FIG.7, the spring being secured to the underside of the print bed ofsuitable means indicated at 482 and at its opposite end to the head 464at 484. A wheel and pulley arrangement generally indicated at 486 isemployed to move the head 464 along to the read/write path, thisarrangement being connected to the head via cord 488 at 490. The cord488 is wound up upon the post or shaft 492 upon energization of a motor494, which corresponds to motor 201 of FIG. 3, suitable speed reductionmeans being generally indicated at 496. Motor 494 is reversible andafter the head 464 traverses the magnetic tape, it is reversed thusreturning the head to the starting position indicated in FIG. 7. Underthe action of the spring 480, tension is maintained in drive cord 488during reverse head travel.

In order to sense that the head 476 has completely traversed themagnetic strip, and is thus ready to be returned to its startingposition, a head position indicating strip 498 is provided together witha finger bracket 500. Referring to FIG. 10, the strip 498 is shown indetail and the fingers of the bracket 500 are indicated at 502, 504 and506. The structure of the bracket 500 and the fingers 502-506 are thesame, in principle, as the bracket and fingers of FIG. 9. Electricallyconducting portions 508, 510, 512, and 514 are also shown mounted on thestrip 498. As indicated in FIG. 7 strip 498 is secured by appropriatemeans to head 464 at point 516 while bracket 500 is fixedly mounted withrespect to the underside of the print bed. The portion 510 correspondsto the motor sense terminal 217 of FIG. 3. As stated above, thedirection of travel of the head is reversed after it either reads orwrites data. It must be returned to the position established by portion510. The reason for this will be clarified shortly hereinafter. Thefinger 502 provides a ground signal.

As the strip 498 moves in the direction of the arrow, finger 506 willengage terminal portion 512 which is utilized during the record phase tocommence recording of the information. Thus, the information will berecorded at full speed of the head. This follows since the head must befully returned to the motor sense terminal 217 (portion 510) before themotor can start and since portion 510 is sufficiently removed fromportion 512. This terminal is connected to output terminal 516 viaelectrical conductor 518 while terminal 510 is connected to outputterminal 511 via conductor 513. When finger 506 engages portion 514 thisindicates that the head has completely traversed the magnetic tape andthe motor 494 is ready to be reversed and thus return the head to itsstarting position at portion 510. When the finger 504 again reachesterminal 510 a pulse is generated which turns the motor 494 off. It willbe realized by those of ordinary skill in the art, that one possiblemodification ofthis invention is to record in one direction and to readin the opposite direction. Wires 518-524 are utilized to respectivelyconnect portions 508-514 to appropriate circuits within the dataverification circuitry of FIG. 2.

As stated hereinbefore, if the credit verification procedure issatisfied, the green light 326 of FIG. 4 will be turned on and the stop332 of FIG. 7 will be retracted so as to permit the imprinting operationto take place. Stop 332 is also shown in FIG. 7, this stop beingretracted whenever solenoid 600 is energized. Solenoid 600 incorporatesa plunger 602 which is normally extended as shown in FIG/7, it beingbiased outwardly by spring 604 which is disposed between a bracket 606connected to the solenoid casing and a retaining ring 608 mounted on theplunger 602. The bracket 606 has an aperture indicated at 610 forpermitting passage of the plunger therethrough. Uponenergization of thesolenoid via wires 612 t and 614, the plunger is retracted therebypermitting interlock release mechanism operation to be effected, theelements comprising this mechanism being generally indicated at 616 andsome of them being described in detail in the before-mentioned U.S.application Ser. No. 7()2,I 22.

Briefly, the interlock release mechanism 616 may be described asfollows. Referring to FIGS. 7 and 8 a lever arm or bale 618 includes aU-shaped portion indicated at 620 and 622 of FIGS. 7 and 8. Thisu-shaped portion is apertured in both legs thereof and mounted on shaft624 thereby permitting rotation of bale 618 about shaft 624. Shaft 624is in turn mounted on a bracket 626 having a U-shaped portion 628, theU-shaped portion 620 of bale 618 fitting into the U shaped portion 628of of bracket 626. Bracket 626 is secured by appropriate means (notshown) to the underside of the imprinter. Thus, shaft 624 is fixed inspace. The stop member 332 is shown in FIGS. 7 and 8 in the positionwhere it prevents forward movement of the imprinting head untilretracted. The stop rotates on shaft 630 which is also fixedly mountedwith respect to the underside of the imprinter by means not shown. Thestop 332 includes an elongated portion 632 which is rotatably disposedabout shaft 630. An actuating arm 634 is also connected to the stop 332.A'wire spring 638 is wrapped around shaft 624 and connected to shaft 630and the underside of bale 618 so as to bias the end of the bale adjacentthe plunger upwardlythat is, in the direction of the arrow in FIG. 8.

The other end of the bale is apertured and connected through thisaperture is a pin 640, a'retaining ring 642 keeping the pin connected tothe bale although the pin is free to move through the aperture. As canbest be seen in FIG. 8 a spring 644 is disposed around pin 640 engagingat one end thereof bale 618 and at the other end thereof a retainingring 646 fixedly secured to pin 640. Pin 640 also has an upper portion648 which extends perpendicularly with respect to the portion extendingthrough the spring 644. Portion 648 extends through sleeve 650 which isin turn connected to actuating arm 634 of stop 332.

Having described the structural elements of the interlock mechanism 616,the operation thereof briefly is that when the solenoid 600 isenergized, its plunger is retracted thereby permitting the bale 618 torotate about shaft 624 and thus pull actuating arm 634 of stop 332 inthe direction of the arrow. Hence, the stop is removed from the path oftravel of the imprinting head because of the action of spring 634 untilthe bale 618 is returned to the position shown in FIG. 8 under theaction of plunger 602. Normally, the solenoid 600 is deenergizedwhenever the power is turned off or when the imprinting head is returnedto its start position after an imprinting operation.

As stated before when the imprint head is returned to its startposition, finger 338 (see FIG. 7) is returned to the position shown.This causes the contact 700 of microswitch 702 to be depressed therebyclosing the switch and generating an appropriate pulse for resetting allcredit verification circuit registers and for deenergizing solenoid 600.As soon as the imprinting head leaves its start position, the finger 338is rotated about shaft 704 under the action of spring 706 to anappropriate stop position 708. Thus, when so removed from the startposition the switch remains open in preparation for the generation ofthe next pulse.

Optional means are also provided for holding the credit card securely inplace during the read and write phases described hereinbefore. Referringto FIG. there is shown a lever means generally indicated at 700. A shaft702 is fixedly positioned with respect to the side walls of the head302. The lever is rotatably mounted about shaft 702 by appropriatemeans. The lower arm 704 includes a curved portion 706 which engages apost 708 (also see FIG. 4) mounted on the print bed whenever the head302 is moved forward until it engages the stop member 332, this portioncorresponding to the before-mentioned intermediate position to which theimprinter head is moved to thereby effect energization of motor 494.Note in FIG. 4 the distance the head 302 is permitted to move forwardbefore engaging stop member 332. As the curved portion 706 engages post708, the upper arm 710 of lever 700 rotates downwardly onto the creditcard which has previously been placed on the anvil. This rotation occursagainst spring means 705 which tends to maintain the lever 700 in theposition shown in FIG. 5.

Thus, a substantially constant clearance is established between the cardand read/write head as the head moves along adjacent the card in spiteof the fact that the card might be slightly wrinkled as is usually thecase after substantial use. AFter the credit verification has beensatisfactorily completed, the imprinter head is permitted to moveforward to effect the imprinting operation since the curved portion 706slips off the post 708 as the clerk moves the head forward. it beingassumed, of course, that the clerk has first placed in the sales slip inthe print bed if she had not done so previously. Further, the lever willreturn to the position shown in FIG. 5.

Numerous modifications of the invention will become apparent to those ofordinary skill in the art upon reading the foregoing disclosure. Duringsuch a reading it will be evident that this invention provides uniqueapparatus combining a variable amount imprinter with credit verificationcircuitry for accomplishing the objects and advantages herein stated.Still other objects and advantages and even further modifications willbecome apparent from this disclosure.

Iclaim:

1. Apparatus comprising:

imprinter means for imprinting information from a printing plate onto adocument, said imprinting means including means for registering firstdata manually by an operator, said first data relating to a currentcredit transaction proposed for said plate;

said printing plate including second data recorded thereon relating tol) the usage of said plate prior to said current transaction and (2) themaximum permissible usage of said plate for credit transactions, saiddata recorded on said plate not being visible to the unaided human eye;means for converting said first data to first electrical signals;read/write means movably mounted with respect to said imprinting means;

means for fixedly positioning said plate on the print bed of saidimprinting means;

means for moving said read/write means with respect to the data recordedon said plate to read the data recorded on said plate and therebygenerate second electrical signals corresponding to said second data;

credit verification circuitry responsive to said first and secondelectrical signals for determining whether said plate has been used forcredit transactions exceeding the maximum permissible usage establishedfor said plate; and

means for indicating to said operator whether said maximum permissibleusage has been exceeded.

2. Apparatus as in claim 1 where said second data is magneticallyrecorded with respect to said printing plate and said read/write meansis a magnetic read/write head.

3. Apparatus as in claim 2 where said print bed includes an aperturetherein, the magnetically encoded portion of said printing plate beingdisposed over said aperture when said plate is positioned in said printbed, and the path of travel of the movable read/write head beingdisposed beneath said aperture.

4. Apparatus as in claim 3 where said data verification circuitryupdates the said second data recorded on said plate if the proposedcurrent credit transaction is approved and generates a third electricalsignal corresponding to the up dated data; and where said read/writehead is responsive to said third electrical signal to write said updateddata on said printing plate.

5. Apparatus as in claim 4 including means for insuring that the movablemagnetic read/write head is moving at full speed before said thirdelectrical signal is written on said magnetically encoded portion ofsaid printing plate.

6. Apparatus as in claim 4 where said means for insuring that theread/wirte head is moving at full speed includes:

first sensing means for sensing the position of said read/write headwhen it is at the beginning of the path it traverses with respect to themagnetically encoded porsaid beginning of the path, said predetermineddistance corresponding to that distance from the beginning of the pathwhere said head will reach its full speed; and

means responsive to said first sensing means for preventing saidread/write head from writing said third electrical signal unless saidread/write head starts from the beginning of said path to thereby insurethat the head is traveling at full speed when it passes said secondsensing means.

7. Apparatus as in claim 6 where said means for moving the read/writehead includes:

a reversible motor;

biasing means tending to position said read/write head at the beginningof its path of travel;

third sensing means for sensing that said read/write head has reachedthe end of said path;

means responsive to said third sensing means for reversing saidreversible motor; and

said read/write head being returned to the beginning of said path underthe control of said biasing means.

8. Apparatus as in claim 7 where said means for moving said read/writehead includes wheel and pulley means connected between said reversiblemotor and said head via a cord for moving said head forwardly along saidpath.

9. Apparatus as in claim 1 including a stop member means for preventingthe imprinting operation until said credit verification circuitry hasperformed its check, said stop member being responsive to saidcircuitry.

10. Apparatus as in claim 9 where said stop member projects into thepath traveled by the imprinting head of said imprinting means; and wheresaid apparatus includes means for retracting said stop member from thelast-mentioned path, when said credit verification circuitry indicatesthat said printing plate is approved for usage with the current proposedcredit transaction.

11. Apparatus as in claim 10 where said means for retracting said stopmember from said paths includes a solenoid responsive to said creditverification circuitry,

the plunger of said solenoid being moved when said credit verificationcircuitry indicates approval; and

means responsive to the movement of the solenoid plunger to remove saidstop member from said paths.

12. Apparatus as in claim 9 including means for indicating that theimprinting head of said imprinting means has returned to its startposition after completing an imprinting operation; and means responsiveto said last-mentioned indicating means for resetting all registers ofsaid credit verification means and for deenergizing said solenoid tothereby prevent another credit transaction until the credit verificationfor said another transaction is determined by said verificationcircuitry.

13. Apparatus as in claim 1 where at least some of said first dataregistered in said registering means by said operator are represented bydecimal digits; and where said apparatus includes a plurality of meansfor respectively converting said decimal digits to BCD encodedelectrical signals.

14. Apparatus as in claim 13 where each said means for BCD encoding oneof said decimal digits includes a movable strip;

means for moving said strip with respect to said apparatus in responseto said operator registering said digits in said registering means;

said strip being divided into ten successive portions disposed along thestrip, each portion containing electrically conductive terminals sopositioned with respect to one edge of the strip so as to correspond toone of the BCD codes for the decimal digits and all ten of the codesbeing respectively represented by all ten of the portions along thestrip; and

means fixedly disposed with respect to said apparatus having at leastfour fingers for sensing said successive portions along said strip,certain ones of the fingers being energized depending upon which portionof the strip the fingers are positioned over, the energized conductorscorresponding to said BCD code of the registered digit corresponding tosaid strip.

' 15. Apparatus as in claim 1 where said first data registered on theimprinting means by said operator includes the money amountcorresponding to said current proposed credit transaction which is to beapproved or disapproved by said credit verification circuitry; and apredetermined time interval for which said credit transaction is to beapproved in relation thereto.

16. Apparatus as in claim 15 where the second data recorded on saidplate includes l) the maximum charge sum permitted for the plate withinsaid predetermined time interval; (2) the time period in which the platewas last used; and (3) the accumulated money amount of past credittransactions.

17. Apparatus as in claim 16 where said credit verification circuitry isresponsive to the last time interval in which the plate was used and thecurrent time interval for which the credit transaction is to be approvedor disapproved to establish whether the time interval for which theplate was last used is later than the current time interval to therebydetermine if the plate or imprinter register means have been tamperedwith or the information has been erroneously trans mitted from eitherthe card or the imprinting means.

18. Apparatus as in claim 1 where said second data includes errordetection information and where said data verification circuitryincludes circuits for determining whether said second data has beentampered with or whether data transmission errors have occurred.

19. Apparatus as in claim 18 where said error detection informationincludes a single bit of data which shopld always be 1.

20. Apparatus as in claim 1 where said printing plate is a credit card.

21. Apparatus as in claim 20 where said credit card includes a strip ofmagnetic tape attached to the back of said card and where said seconddata is magnetically recorded on said strip of tape.

22. Apparatus as in claim 20 where said second data is recorded alongone track disposed along said strip and where said second data includesclock signals for said credit verification circuitry recorded along asecond track disposed substantially parallel to said first track.

23. Apparatus as in claim 1 including means for securing said plate onsaid imprinting means so that a substantially constant clearance ismaintained between the plate and the read/write means as the lattermeans moves with respect to the plate in spite of the fact that theplate will tend to become wrinkled with use.

24. Apparatus as in claim 23 where said plate securing means includes:

lever means rotatably mounted with respect to the forward portion of theimprinter head of the imprinting means; spring means for normallymaintaining said lever means clear of said plate; and

a post so positioned on the print bed of said imprinting means that whenthe imprinter head is positioned adjacent where the plate is placed onthe bed, the lower arm of the lever means will engage the post so thatthe upper arm of the lever means will be rotated to a position where theupper arm holds the plate in place.

1. Apparatus comprising: imprinter means for imprinting information froma printing plate onto a document, said imprinting means including meansfor registering first data manually by an operator, said first datarelating to a current credit transaction proposed for said plate; saidprinting plate including second data recorded thereon relating to (1)the usage of said plate prior to said current transaction and (2) themaximum permissible usage of said plate for credit transactions, saiddata recorded on said plate not being visible to the unaided human eye;means for converting said first data to first electrical signals;read/write means movably mounted with respect to said imprinting means;means for fixedly positioning said plate on the print bed of saidimprinting means; means for moving said read/write means with respect tothe data recorded on said plate to read the data recorded on said plateand thereby generate second electrical signals corresponding to saidsecond data; credit verification circuitry responsive to said first andsecond electrical signals for determining whether said plate has beenused for credit transactions exceeding the maximum permissible usageestablished for said plate; and means for indicating to said operatorwhether said maximum permissible usage has been exceeded.
 2. Apparatusas in claim 1 where said second data is magnetically recorded withrespect to said printing plate and said read/write means is a magneticread/write head.
 3. Apparatus as in claim 2 where said print bedincludes an aperture therein, the magnetically encoded portion of saidprinting plate being disposed over said aperture when said plate ispositioned in said print bed, and the path of travel of the movableread/write head being disposed beneath said aperture.
 4. Apparatus as inclaim 3 where said data verification circuitry updates the said seconddata recorded on said plate if the proposed current credit transactionis approved and generates a third electrical signal corresponding to theupdated data; and where said read/write head is responsive to said thirdelectrical signal to write said updated data on said printing plate. 5.Apparatus as in claim 4 including means for insuring that the movablemagnetic read/write head is moving at full speed before said thirdelectrical signal is written on said magnetically encoded portion ofsaid printing plate.
 6. Apparatus as in claim 4 where said means forinsuring that the read/wirte head is moving at full speed includes:first sensing means for sensing the position of said read/write headwhen it is at the beginning of the path it traverses with respect to themagnetically encoded portion of the printing plate; record sensing meansfor sensing the position of said read/write head when it is apredetermined distance from said beginning of the path, saidpredetermined distance corresponding to that distance from the beginningof the path where said head will reach its full speed; and meansresponsive to said first sensing means for preventing said read/writehead from writing said third electrical signal unless said read/writehead starts from the beginning of said path to thereby insure that thehead is traveling at full speed when it passes said second sensingmeans.
 7. Apparatus as in claim 6 where said means for moving theread/write head includes: a reversible motor; biasing means tending toposition said read/write head at the beginning of its path of travel;third sensing means for sensing that said read/write head has reachedthe end of said path; means responsive to said third sensing means forreversing said reversible motor; and said read/write head being returnedto the beginning of said path under the control of said biasing means.8. Apparatus as in claim 7 where said means for moving said read/writehead includes wheel and pulley means connected between said reversiblemotor and said head via a cord for moving said head forwardly along saidpath.
 9. Apparatus as in claim 1 including a stop member means forpreventing the imprinting operation until said credit verificationcircuitry has performed its check, said stop member being responsive tosaid circuitry.
 10. Apparatus as in claim 9 where said stop memberprojects into the path traveled by the imprinting head of saidimprinting means; and where said apparatus includes means for retractingsaid stop member from the last-mentioned path, when said creditverification circuitry indicates that said printing plate is approvedfor usage with the current proposed credit transaction.
 11. Apparatus asin claim 10 where said means for retracting said stop member from saidpaths includes a solenoid responsive to said credit verificationcircuitry, the plunger of said solenoid being moved when said creditverification circuitry indicates approval; and means responsive to themovement of the solenoid plunger to remove said stop member from saidpaths.
 12. Apparatus as in claim 9 including means for indicating thatthe imprinting head of said imprinting means has returned to its startposition after completing an imprinting operation; and means responsiveto said last-mentioned indicating means for resetting all registers ofsaid credit verification means and for deenergizing said solenoid tothereby prevent another credit transaction until the credit verificationfor said another transaction is determined by said verificationcircuitry.
 13. Apparatus as in claim 1 where at least some of said firstdata registered in said registering means by said operator arerepresented by decimal digits; and where said apparatus includes aplurality of means for respectively converting said decimal digits toBCD encoded electrical signals.
 14. Apparatus as in claim 13 where eachsaid means for BCD encoding one of said decimal digits includes amovable strip; means for moving said strip with respect to saidapparatus in response to said operator registering said digits in saidregistering means; said strip being divided into ten successive portionsDisposed along the strip, each portion containing electricallyconductive terminals so positioned with respect to one edge of the stripso as to correspond to one of the BCD codes for the decimal digits andall ten of the codes being respectively represented by all ten of theportions along the strip; and means fixedly disposed with respect tosaid apparatus having at least four fingers for sensing said successiveportions along said strip, certain ones of the fingers being energizeddepending upon which portion of the strip the fingers are positionedover, the energized conductors corresponding to said BCD code of theregistered digit corresponding to said strip.
 15. Apparatus as in claim1 where said first data registered on the imprinting means by saidoperator includes the money amount corresponding to said currentproposed credit transaction which is to be approved or disapproved bysaid credit verification circuitry; and a predetermined time intervalfor which said credit transaction is to be approved in relation thereto.16. Apparatus as in claim 15 where the second data recorded on saidplate includes (1) the maximum charge sum permitted for the plate withinsaid predetermined time interval; (2) the time period in which the platewas last used; and (3) the accumulated money amount of past credittransactions.
 17. Apparatus as in claim 16 where said creditverification circuitry is responsive to the last time interval in whichthe plate was used and the current time interval for which the credittransaction is to be approved or disapproved to establish whether thetime interval for which the plate was last used is later than thecurrent time interval to thereby determine if the plate or imprinterregister means have been tampered with or the information has beenerroneously transmitted from either the card or the imprinting means.18. Apparatus as in claim 1 where said second data includes errordetection information and where said data verification circuitryincludes circuits for determining whether said second data has beentampered with or whether data transmission errors have occurred. 19.Apparatus as in claim 18 where said error detection information includesa single bit of data which should always be
 20. Apparatus as in claim 1where said printing plate is a credit card.
 21. Apparatus as in claim 20where said credit card includes a strip of magnetic tape attached to theback of said card and where said second data is magnetically recorded onsaid strip of tape.
 22. Apparatus as in claim 20 where said second datais recorded along one track disposed along said strip and where saidsecond data includes clock signals for said credit verificationcircuitry recorded along a second track disposed substantially parallelto said first track.
 23. Apparatus as in claim 1 including means forsecuring said plate on said imprinting means so that a substantiallyconstant clearance is maintained between the plate and the read/writemeans as the latter means moves with respect to the plate in spite ofthe fact that the plate will tend to become wrinkled with use. 24.Apparatus as in claim 23 where said plate securing means includes: levermeans rotatably mounted with respect to the forward portion of theimprinter head of the imprinting means; spring means for normallymaintaining said lever means clear of said plate; and a post sopositioned on the print bed of said imprinting means that when theimprinter head is positioned adjacent where the plate is placed on thebed, the lower arm of the lever means will engage the post so that theupper arm of the lever means will be rotated to a position where theupper arm holds the plate in place.